GENERAL STORM INFORMATION

At Broward College our highest priority is the safety of our students, faculty, staff and visitors to our campuses. To that end, the College works with National Weather Service and other officials to monitor severe weather patterns and storms that may potentially affect our campuses and sites.

Now is the time to ensure you are ready for any potential weather-related threat to our area.

PREPARING FOR A STORM

The first step in preparing for any disaster is being informed. You can accomplish this step by:

• Visting the Broward College Safety Website, where you will find a wealth of information on what to do before and after a storm.
• It is vital that you use BC Alert to receive notifications about cancellations, campus closings and more if the area is threatened by a storm.
  • You must ensure that your contact information with the College is up to date so that notifications will reach you – the system uses various communications channels (email, text/SMS messages, phone calls.)
    • Be sure to store the BC Alert phone number (954-201-3599) in your cell phone, so the alerts aren’t flagged as “spam.”

PLANNING

The next step is planning. Being prepared can lessen the complications that can accompany any type of emergency or disaster.

• Educate yourself and remain informed. When Broward College is threatened by a Tropical Storm students, faculty, and staff will be notified of cancellations and closures by BC Alert. 
• Take time to make a personal emergency plan. A good resource to get started is ready.gov
• Gather supplies and build an emergency kit.
  • When it comes to supplies, officials suggest that you have enough to last up to 72 hours per person. Supplies should include, but are not limited to: water, work gloves, non-perishable food, battery/crank powered weather radio, flashlights and extra batteries for all equipment.
    • It is also advisable to have a First aid kit, toolkit and/or multi-function tool, sanitation and personal hygiene items, personal and important documents, cell phone and charger (portable power banks to charge portable devices), emergency contact information, cash, and specialty items (i.e., medical/medicine, baby and pet supplies.)

WHERE TO GET UPDATES

Should severe weather, tropical storms or hurricanes threaten any of Broward College’s campuses or locations, we will provide updates about our operating status, campus closings, event cancellations and re-openings via:

• Initial email messages from advisory@broward.edu
• The BC Alert Notification System
  • This system sends out alerts using a number of communication channels
    • We recommend storing the BC Alert phone number (954-201-3599) in your cell phone so alerts will not be flagged as spam.
• The Broward College Weather Info website (broward.edu/weather)
• The Broward College hotlines
  • Students: 954-982-7142
  • Faculty:     954-982-7143

This is why it is so important that your contact information is up to date in the College system, as our alert notifications rely on that information to deliver messages.

In addition, the College will provide updated information to all local media (print, radio, and TV), which can be used to reach those who do not have access to a telephone or to the Internet.

Being prepared for a disaster includes a series of steps that will help you to be more resilient in the event of severe weather or other emergency situations. When it comes to storm preparations, remember the old adage: “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

Thank you, be safe.

Broward College Incident Management Team